THE EXECUTIVEANTI- CORRUPTIONAND POWER CONUNDRUM
T IHE President is perhaps the most coveted executive position or office in any country, whether it is referred to as Prime Minister, Chancellor or other executive titles as guided by the laws of that country.
Corruption typically occurs when people take advantage of loopholes within the system of government to make away with public resources. It T is is notoriously hard for most complex peoand come punitive without ple apology to believe the highest that office the corrective. in the reason land. Enshrined for anti-corrupin and elThis is easier said than evated tion is by to the reform constitution, the it govcondone because government notes ernment the very system highest through of instituitself is the victim of cortional policy authority and action. conceived by law. ruption because it has lost
It is power.
Arrest and imprisonmoney and other resourc
Since 1964 our Constitutions
ment are only a necessary es belonging to the people.
have reserved a section aptly ti
end of the process for acYet we expect the same
tled “The Executive” which expands tual offenders on the height - a and strong depths government to respect the
per Article 33 (1) and (2) of the of reminder this most to unique obey office. the law. The human rights of those who
1991 Constitution. opening At its paragraph core, anti-corrupof this section allegedly abused office
In other words, the very idea of has tion always is not read a matter that “There of legshall and the rights of citizens.
President is incomplete if it does be acy a President creation, of but the a Republic normal of It not is a capture very difficult the President’s middle conZambia function who of shall government. be the Head of ground nection to and maintain. authority over the State...” Corruption typically administration, To create balance legal framework be
occurs The 1991 when Constitution people amendtake tween and function these of two government positions, in all ed advantage that definition of so loopholes that it inexperts its sphere. have Even more, advanced the definicludes within and the immediately system of govshows four tion of ideas President of how is only to complete con
the President as “the Head of the
ernment to make away struct once it captures an anti-corruption the President’s auGovernment and the Commanderwith public resources. office thority or over department: the defence forces as a
1
in-Chief of the Defence Forces.”
Reform becomes necsworn The protector Universal of the nation Model and Secondly, they expanded the its people extent
is typified to the the of Inusing definition essary to also seal show those the loopincumby
force dependent where necessary. Commisbent holes as a and repository justifiably or custodian take of
The second portion of the defiall to executive court those power who in the abuse country. sion Against Corruption
nition reinforces the first two These the system amendments for were personmoved (ICAC) of Hong Kong. The
tenets but adds a veiled layer of from al gain. being It under is an the unending Functions presumption of innocence
authority over the unseen and unof process the President needing in constant the 1964 ensures mentioned functions that the of the ICAC office. Constitution, check and to even becoming revision. part of achieves Every the amendment highest levels to the the In core fact, definition one of President the easas of Republican integrity Constitution in their work. since
iest ways to confirm if an Its core strengths are in..POLITICS VERSUS
One-party state, nay autocracy; and 1991 being the reintroduction of democracy.
THE LAW
And yet for all this, there is one critical flaw in this Constitutional arrangement of the Executive President. The history of our country at any given time is told by the incumbent.
If for example, the incumbent admires a given predecessor, they can name endless monuments after that predecessor. And the opposite is true; if the President in office dislikes one predecessor or more, it is easy to negate and altogether work to erase their legacy. There is no balance.
In the civil service, a President’s word is taken as a directive – an order needing only formalisation for record. In the public sphere,
The law must also instruct
the President’s word, even loose
those who are at the forefront of combatting ly spoken can communicate the
corruption to undergo a mood, intention and direction of
public audit and show government.
1991 has kept these two core defiDemocracy in Zambia led by Dr. the sovereign. It is in the transient
what they have seized, It can galvanise, inspire or cause nitions of President. So, what does Frederick Chiluba have not been custodians of this office that we
how those properties or worry in the nation. This soft fricall this mean? recognised enough for legally place our hope in their fortitude
assets were acquired by tion works well for an incumbent It entails that if democracy is intransferring power back to the to improve, protect and serve the
the accused and how they President, but this same soft fricdeed about people power, then the people. These tenets now rest in country in every respect possible
have been disposed. tion turns hard and combustible 1991 Constitution did a good job at Article 90 and Article 91 (1) and – to lead the nation to a promised for an ex-President. reminding future Presidents that (2) of the 2016 Constitution. future. Let us conclude this way for their mandate came from the elecAfter 1991, the voter was no Therefore, if the President denow: that to overcome this comtorate. The 1991 Constitution witlonger a servant of the elected. rives positional authority from the plexity of the executive, which is nessed the rebirth of a people-cenElections were not anymore, a repeople, and if people constantly loyal only to the incumbent, there tric Constitution which honours petitive exercise to maintain the change, then incumbents must is need for us, in our Constitution the electoral process and the elecstatus quo. The President was not change. This reasoning was not to go further and synergise the retorate as the reason for the exisequal to an Emperor or King anyin the 1964 Constitution, let alone lationship between the President tence and purpose of President. more, they could be voted out. the 1972 amendment to become a
The Anti-Corruption Commission and voters, on one hand; and the
This is the first noticeable delibIt is out of this awareness that one-party state. government bureaucratic strucare erate out shift rightly between perfect the 1964 but and or misled people now to freely state demand a series reforms we come Indeed, back every to reform. Constitution we POLITICAL
ture on the CASES other. what the 1991 they Constitutions. have in comThe 2016 of unfounded and that government allegations is compelled For have Zambia, had, has been the a Pubresult of an Hopefully, this will make a govmon Constitution are clear makes overarching this critical or fallacies to listen and, that more importantly, lic Finance era of either Management hope or rejection. For ernment of the people through national note a preamble objectives of the that executive go wasted act. The over President 20 years is important of Act, 2018 instance, is one 1963-1964: of the best rejection of their vote, and of the people
Political cases beyond section, which extinguishing is important, or but the because courts’ it time. is here, we deposit our tools colonialism at our and disposal the hopeful to tranthrough government action; ulti
work was already done in 1991. hope in the incumbents to emsition to independence and the arising from
obliterating the accused. It is not surprising that combat corruption if we mately creating a President of the
The founding fathers of body and exemplify the dignity of birth of a new nation; 1972-1990: people’s power.
Their goals include imrelated cases refuse to educate the public and enmities or
proving investor confireach a conclusive end becorporates about this Act.
grudges are not
dence and participation cause they were meant for It details how Govern
forced into the
from independent wings political mileage, not the ment enters into financial of government such as seriousness of the courttransactions and actually courts of law.
parliament on a continual room. The two must be aligns State transactions basis. distinctly separate. to actual national goals